Hey guys, I'm your host Tara A. Devlin, and welcome to this week's episode of Kowabana,

true Japanese scary stories from around the internet.

This crazy year is coming to an end, and I don't know about you, but it has certainly

been both a fast year and a long year.

I released several new books this year, including the first volumes of Kaihan, Bizarer Crimes

That Shook Japan and Bunkai, baffling Japanese internet mysteries. And this podcast

has also gone from strength to strength, gaining new listeners with pretty much every episode.

It really warms my heart that you guys are enjoying the show, so thank you for sticking around,

and I hope it has provided some entertainment during these strange

and often dark times. As we're nearing the end of the year, I thought we'd take a look

at some of the stories Japanese readers enjoyed throughout 2020. These stories weren't necessarily

posted this year, but they were often at the top of Rita rankings throughout the year.

To kick things off, we're heading into a drugstore with some patients who need help with

something not necessarily medical.

Find out what in...

At the drugstore. medical care sits at the threshold between life and death. In particular, the amount of

strange happenings in hospitals is endless. Unfortunately, this story isn't set in a hospital. It took place in the town drug

store next to the hospital. The star of this story is Ueno-san, an alias, the pharmacist

who worked there. It happened as the rush of patients had calmed down and she was putting away

some of the picture books the children had been reading. She happened to hear some footsteps

nearby. When she looked over, she saw a girl she recognized looking at the shelf full of

children's picture books. She had been in a few days earlier with

...